It has become the latest fashion for blue chip companies with hefty marketing budgets to flaunt their green credentials in an effort to attract today’s conscientious consumers. Whilst some of these companies appear to have a genuine interest in the environment, others it can be said have simply jumped on the latest marketing bandwagon, ‘greenwashing’ their products and services to appeal to modern consumers.

All aboard the green bandwagon

Many major companies have been quick to take advantage of this swell of public interest, talking the talk, but not necessarily walking the walk. The danger is that smaller, lesser-known companies that have pioneered sustainable business practices will be overshadowed and possibly even pushed aside by big business in 2007. This ‘greenwashing’ has the potential to shut the door on smaller companies in the sector that don’t have the financial muscle of their blue chip competitors. These companies now face a struggle to maintain a foothold in a marketplace that they helped to build.

Whilst a few, notably organic food producers, have broken through into the public arena, most companies, among them green-building contractors, renewable energy providers, organic apparel retailers and many of the great companies that are listed on Ethical Junction, remain on the outside, obscured from potential customers. It is important that these companies stand up to be counted, taking advantage of the current swell of public opinion, just as the big corporates have, to ensure they are not overshadowed in 2007.

Taking on the big boys

It’s interesting that nowadays consumers are becoming more and more sceptical about businesses claims and many of the companies that have jumped on the green bandwagon have been met with a justifiably frosty response. If companies are going to market the ethical or green initiatives they are involved in then they must be prepared to prove the merit and validity of their actions. This authenticity is what sets the truly green companies apart from the corporate ‘greenwashing’ that is currently in operation. Authentically green companies, many of which are small, need to start making some noise, publicising the fantastic work that they are doing, or they run the risk of being drowned out by the corporate marketing machine.

Making some noise

If you are not a well-known brand, it can be difficult persuading potential clients and customers to use your company. After all, why would anyone want to use your product or services when there are already established brands out there that they can use instead? Positive press coverage can help and provides the next best thing to a word-of-mouth recommendation; the difference being that you are getting your message across to hundreds, if not thousands of people, rather than just one or two. Powerful profile-raising of this kind is highly effective for small companies especially when competing with the ‘big boys’. If a journalist writes about your company they add instant validity. The public takes its lead from the press. They respect the journalists and publications that provide them with information and the fact that a journalist has chosen to write about your company, markets you in a way that is far more effective than advertising. Anyone can advertise if they have the budget which is why the corporates are utilising this medium to flaunt their green initiatives. But for press coverage about your company to appear, a journalist has had to decide that your business is authentic and worth writing about.

This means that with the right kind of press coverage you can really stand out from the crowd. But, if you don’t tell anyone about your business, then you run the risk of getting lost in the rush. It is essential that such authentically green companies continue to exist because without them the battle to save the environment becomes more a blue chip marketing tactic and ultimately this benefits no one, least of the planet.

Kim Stoddart is MD of Green Rocket (www.greenrocketgroup.com), an award winning ethical media relations company and social enterprise set up to promote and support social and environmental change.

Going, going…green (The Argus)

Case study

Green Rocket

Kim Stoddart, Managing Director and Founder of Hove based ethical media relations consultancy and social enterprise, Green Rocket, was concerned about the environmental impact of her business from day one. As a community interest company with an authentic environmental purpose (75% of the company’s profits are reinvested in green initiatives), Kim felt that the company really had to be green to the core and that meant the first place to start had to be the office.

Prior to launch, an environmental charter was put in place which was designed to reduce the environmental impact of the business’ everyday operations. This looked at every area of the business and just some of the broad range of initiatives put in place included: recycling everything recyclable, including paper, cardboard and plastic waste as well as old computer equipment, mobile phones and furniture. Choosing suppliers for their green and ethical credentials; such as Good Energy for electricity, Magpie for recycling, the Co-Op for banking and Green Your Office for office supplies and office cleaning. Offices were chosen in a central location, to make it easier for staff to walk, or get public transport to work and to travel to client meetings.

And it doesn’t stop there; Green Rocket is constantly looking at ways of improving and adding to its environmental charter and believes that engaging its people to get involved is a really important part of the process. This has resulted in some simple but very effective ideas, such as providing bags for life to be used for lunchtime shopping and coming up with novel but effective ways of reducing paper waste. Kim has even appointed a member of staff to take on the role of ‘Green Champion’ so that everyone can be kept up-to-date with the latest environmental issues and to encourage ongoing ideas generation.

How to be green at work

Kim Stoddart, Managing Director of Green Rocket (www.greenrocketgroup.com) looks at the changes managers can implement to make their working environment greener.

It has become the latest fashion for blue chip companies with hefty marketing budgets to flaunt their green credentials in an effort to attract today’s conscientious consumers. Whilst some of these companies appear to have a genuine interest in the environment, others it can be said have simply jumped on the latest marketing bandwagon, ‘greenwashing’ their products and services to appeal to modern consumers.

Whatever their aims, it is good that environmental concerns are in the spotlight and that more and more businesses have begun to consider their environmental impact. However, there is so much doom and gloom in the media and little accessible advice available for businesses that want to take the first step but have no idea where to start. In fact there are many things that can be easily implemented and a series of small steps can soon add up to make an impact and get you thinking along the right lines.

Turning green

Every business has an environmental impact and whatever size your company is and no matter which sector you work in there are a number of ways that you can make your offices more of an eco-friendly workplace. From the obvious steps such as recycling paper and office materials to reviewing and choosing your suppliers according to their sustainability and quality of service, there are steps that you can take that will cut your energy consumption and emissions as well as saving you money in the long run. Here are just some of the ways in which you can make your office a greener place to work:

Recycle, recycle, recycle– It is estimated that the UK produces more than 434 million tonnes of waste every year and currently over 80 per cent of this goes to landfill. From the reams of paper that we get through in our photocopiers and printers to the plastic cups at the water cooler, the UK’s offices are some of the worst culprits when it comes to waste. We all know the importance of recycling so it seems crazy that more businesses don’t have systems in place, especially when it really is so easy to arrange.

So how do you move your workforce from refuse to recycling? Well, making it easy for people to recycle is the best place to start. Installing separate recycling bins for paper, plastic and tins, which are clearly labelled and accessible is an easy way to reduce your refuse and companies such as www.homerecycling.co.uk offer specially designed bins to make the process even easier. Education and encouragement are also very important. If your workforce is encouraged to make a difference on a personal level and come up with their own ideas, then they are more likely to actively engage with a recycling system in the workplace.

Waste paper is one of the office’s biggest environmental sins. 20 per cent of the world’s wood harvest is used to make paper and in the UK we use more than 12.5 million tonnes of paper and cardboard every year. When you consider that every tonne of paper that is recycled saves around one kilowatt of energy and some 17 trees it is easy that a simple change in working practices can have a major impact. There are steps you can take straight away. Encourage staff to print on both sides of paper where possible and to only print documents out when it is really necessary. Also where paper has only been printed on one side it can be made into internal note books which people can use within the office. This is an idea that one of our people came up with and it is working really well for us. Installing recycling bins and incentivising staff to produce less waste are also quick and easily implemented measures.

Demand more from your supply – Evaluating your supply chain and seeking out more eco-friendly alternatives is another simple step towards a greener office. From changing your energy supplier to a company like Good Energy (www.good-energy.co.uk) to using a green office cleaning company such as GreenYourOffice (www.greenyouroffice.co.uk); there’s a more sustainable and ethical alternative for almost every area of your business. If you explain to your old suppliers why you are changing this has a knock on effect of encouraging them to employ more environmentally conscious practises.

Energy saving measures – We all know about them but rarely do we employ them in our working environments. From energy saving light bulbs and bricks in the loo, to encouraging staff to turn their PCs off at night, a greener office is also a leaner office as far as your energy bills are concerned.

Incentivise your people – They are your most important asset and no matter what system you put in place it is up to your staff to ensure that it works. Encouraging your staff to go green is vitally important – get them excited about it and involved. Competitions or incentives for employees can make an impact inside of the office and out. From something as simple as offering a box of chocolates or bottle of wine to the person with the best waste saving idea, to setting up a lift share scheme or subsidising staff bicycles it is up to you to get your workforce involved.

Green minds think alike

Nobody knows a business better than the people who work within it, therefore staff in a business are in the best position to come up with greener ways of doing everyday business tasks.

Involving your staff at all levels is essential; whether it’s holding mini workshops to discuss your existing plans and encourage feedback, to setting up dedicated brainstorming sessions for those employees that are particularly keen to get involved. Enthusiasm is infectious; if your people understand the importance that their ideas can have and know that they will be valued and rewarded for them then you’ll be able to tap into an ongoing flow of innovation and creativity. It’s important to keep this momentum going so something like a monthly competition or regular workshops will ensure your project doesn’t lose pace. There are always new things you can be doing and from our experience getting involved makes people feel good about themselves and their jobs as they strive to make a difference. It also helps to build a strong working culture and is good for your business as it encourages collaboration and creativity.

A launchpad to a green working environment

At Blue Rocket environmental concerns have always been important and we had a strong set of ideas and environmental systems in place from the outset, but we wanted more. By encouraging our staff we have been able to ensure a steady stream of new ideas which have meant that we are always finding new ways of becoming more sustainable and influencing others to do the same.

Our people are encouraged to come up with new ideas and every month we run a green ideas competition. Some of the best ideas that have come about recently include:

Bags for life – We noticed that a lot of plastic bags were making their way into the office when people were going out to get their shopping. Recently on the advice of our staff we have bought some canvas shoulder bags that our people take out with them instead. This simple idea has made saving carrier bags much more accessible.

The eco kettle - Marking our kettle with how much water is required for a certain number of cups of tea is another really simple but effective idea that one of our people came up with. He simply worked out how much water is used per cup and marked it onto the kettle; given the amount of tea drinking that goes on in our office his simple idea has saved a lot of electricity over the past year.

An eco-education – On the bequest of our staff we are also about to tie in with Sussex Wildlife Trust so that each of our full time people gets to spend a half-day out of the office each month at their nature reserve working on a project of their choosing. This project will again encourage people to think about the environment in their day-to-day activity.

We have been running green initiatives for coming up to four years and have found that a lot of the systems that are implemented within the office have had a knock on impact as our staff start to adopt these practises into their home lives. For example, one of our consultants who always used to drive into work recently took it upon herself to make the journey on her bicycle. Other members of staff have changed their electricity provider to a renewable source and one of our associates even employed a company to advise her on carbon balancing her home.

Why go green?

You can’t afford not to. The Stern report into the likely implications of climate change predicted that if action wasn’t taken on global warming then the economy would shrink by 20 per cent; but, if we were to invest just one per cent of our incomes then we could stop this altogether.

It is also impossible to ignore the growing consumer demand for goods and services to be delivered in a socially and environmentally responsible way. As social concern for environmental issues continues to grow your business will need to examine its own contribution to global warming or risk being left out in the cold.

Kim Stoddart has recently launched Green Rocket, a new and award-winning ethical media relations company and social enterprise dedicated to driving social and environmental change. For more information please see (www.greenrocketgroup.com) or call 01273 779 220.

Ten ways to make your business greener

Kim Stoddart founder of Green Rocket (www.greenrocketgroup.com), a new and award-winning ethical media relations company and social enterprise dedicated to driving social and environmental change, looks at ten steps that companies can take to go green.

It has become the latest fashion for blue chip companies with hefty marketing budgets to flaunt their green credentials in an effort to attract today’s conscientious consumers. Whilst some of these companies appear to have a genuine interest in the environment, others it can be said have simply jumped on the latest marketing bandwagon, ‘greenwashing’ their products and services to appeal to modern consumers.

Whatever their aims, more and more businesses have begun to consider their environmental impact but taking the first step can be difficult and knowing where to start even harder. There are many things that you can do and a series of small steps can soon add up to make an impact and get you thinking along the right lines:

1. Recycle, recycle, recycle –Offices generate so much waste. Simply installing a recycling bin for paper, or organising a collection scheme with someone like Magpie (www.magpie.coop) can make all the difference. You can also recycle old computers and office furniture.

2. Use public transport – Where possible use public transport to travel to meetings.

3. Choose green suppliers – From changing your energy supplier to a company like Good Energy (www.good-energy.co.uk) to using a green cleaning company such as Greenyouroffice (www.greenyouroffice.co.uk); there’s an eco alternative for every area of your business.

4. Bright ideas – Use energy efficient light bulbs; they cut emissions and save you money.

5. Switch on to switching off – Turn off all lights and PCs over night.

6. Incentivise your staff – Encourage your staff to go green; competitions or incentives for employees can make an impact inside of the office and out.

7. Get the experts in – If you are serious about going green call in the experts to carbon balance your business. Companies such as Brighton-based CLEVEL (www.clevel.co.uk) are a great place to start.

8. Brick in loo – This saves a lot of water waste.

9. Use recycled paper – Go for a non-bleach variety

10. Use both sides – Print on both sides when you can and where possible avoid printing in the first place.

What is social enterprise really about?

I asked this question of Martin Murphy, who along with Tom Howat runs Network 2012, a website dedicated to promoting the values of social enterprises.

Martin’s explanation was as follows:

“When thinking about this question I suppose the natural place to start is my own motivation. Late in 2006 Tom Howat, my now business partner came to me with an idea he wanted me to get involved with. That idea became Network 2012 an online business and social networking website and events company and we have been up and running now for just over 8 months with nearly 400 members signed up.

Our aim is to charge a small monthly or annual membership fee, which will contribute towards providing bursaries for those individuals, or groups who wish to start their own social enterprise but would otherwise struggle for start up finance.

In a small way we are working towards a more inclusive society and a fairer distribution of wealth and that is the driving force behind Network 2012. Working towards a social goal as well as a business goal is in my view what makes a social enterprise. In essence we want a fairer world and see business as the method of providing that fairer world. In our case an online networking business.

Even using business though people see things differently and there are many different methods of working. For example some want to maximise profits and use those profits for a good cause while others wish to provide supported employment for those who would struggle to gain employment through the normal channels, and are not necessarily profit focused. Break even focused, sustainability focused maybe but not necessarily profit focused.

But then what does profit mean anyway? We live in a world today where I would argue for the most part profit is almost seen as another word for greed. We hear of “fat cat bonuses”, we see utility companies making what some might call obscene profit while the average person struggles to pay their bills and get by.

The world I want to see would entail those same utility companies run as social enterprises and the profits reinvested in the community instead of going who knows where! What if the profit were used to ensure that no one dies of exposure in winter instead of high bills being a reason people wont turn their heating on and do die of exposure? One day this is how it will be and I’m convinced that when that day comes we will look back at the way we generally do business now and see it as almost barbaric!

At the moment we have people who we describe as social entrepreneurs out there running social enterprises and working towards a better world. They are not people who take the attitude that we’ll never make a fairer world it’s too big a job they are people with a can do attitude who believe we have to start somewhere. They are heroes who work not just for their own benefit but also for the benefit of others. They do this often by working all the hour’s god sends with very few resources and the usual struggle for start up funding and most would say they love it!

I admire every single one of them. They are tired of living in an unfair and out of balance world where we see daily worldwide inequality, extreme poverty alongside fantastic wealth and children dying for lack of food, clean water or medicine and are doing something about it.

It is the doing something about it through business that makes a social enterprise and if current trends are anything to go by in the future we will be much more of a force to be reckoned with. By all accounts the social economy is growing 10 times faster than the normal economy. Being aware of this fact could be the make or break of any business! “

I agreed wholeheartedly with Martin, but had to admit:

“Martin, I want to develop a more `ethical’ business, but don’t know what
I can do to `make a difference’ right now, whilst struggling to run my
small business. I know that with making good `profits’ will come the opportunity to
reinvest it and do good, but what can I do now while my business is still growing?”

“I take your point completely. I appreciate that starting and running a small business is difficult I think there are definitely things small businesses can do.

Check out their suppliers for example. Can they use a business that is a social enterprise/fair trade? Hopefully one that is competitive. Can they employ someone with disabilities, a single parent or long term unemployed?

The overall advantage and this is something that shouldn’t be lost is that in the long run this kind of thinking may give that company a competitive edge.

I attended a round table discussion last week with some representatives from large corporations all talking about Corporate Social Responsibility and whereas before the job of leading CSR was one given to someone an employer didn’t really know what to do with now they all have experience in the marketing arms of their respective companies.

Alot of it is about brand recognition and appealing to a consumer who is becoming more conscious about what products they buy.I also think that in future perhaps the rate of corporation tax may be lower for companies that do something for their communities. As I’ve said earlier though Suzy I do think it may be hard to convince someone struggling to get their business off the ground that they can do anything but I’m sure with a bit of thought that they can.”

“Thank you Martin!”
Network 2012 is a social enterprise. An online business and social network and events company it has been developed and will continue to develop in a spirit of making a contribution to social enterprise and business that becomes sustainable.

We are a marketplace for the promotion of goods and services and a supportive network of individuals and businesses who are committed to making a positive difference in the world through business.

Network 2012 and its members contribute to the growth of social enterprise through small membership fees which allow us to provide bursaries for others who wish to start social enterprises . A proportion of those bursaries will go to marginalised individuals and groups who would otherwise struggle for start up finance.

www.network2012.net